An air fryer is an excellent kitchen appliance you can use to make your favorite dishes, but you won’t achieve your goals if you make cooking mistakes. Many people prefer air fryer than other cooking appliances because it uses less oil, cuts fat content/calories, and allows you to enjoy healthier foods. What are the five cooking mistakes people make with their air fryers? In today’s article, we will answer this question. Read on!
1. Using too Much Oil
One aspect that has increased the popularity of air fryers among consumers is less oil usage when cooking food. While some food items require you to use more oil for a crispy finish, it will affect the food taste and flavor if you use more than the recommended amount. At the same time, it can overheat the appliance and increase the risk of a fire.
If you cook fat-rich food items, such as chicken wings and bacon, you don’t need to add extra oil. However, if you want to achieve a crisper finish, you can spray oil on these food items in the final stage of the cooking process.
Likewise, if you use an air fryer for baking, you won’t need to add oil to the basket. Remember, an air fryer works like a convection oven that circulates hot air to bake the food. However, if you want to make food items like French fries, you can add 1-2 teaspoons of oil. Although the hot air can fry the food, it won’t make it crispy if you skip adding the oil.
Moreover, we recommend avoiding pressurized propellant oil sprays to maintain your air fryer and prolong its lifespan. Using canned or pressurized oil sprays is another cooking mistake that can lead to harsh consequences.
2. Not Rotating the Food
Although air fryers do not require human intervention, it does require your supervision. Not rotating the food is one of the cooking mistakes that can waste your food, time, and money. So, if you want to achieve a perfect crisp on both sides of the food, make sure you rotate or flip the food item periodically during the cooking process.
For example, when you cook chicken or meat in the air fryer, make sure you rotate it appropriately to avoid burning or overcooking. Remember, cooking meats in the air fryer require different rotations due to the varying thickness of the food.
Likewise, you can leave the food in the unit and expect it to cook evenly. You must rotate the food midway to ensure you achieve more crispiness. Therefore, we recommend flipping or rotating the food item halfway during the cooking process to achieve more crispiness.
3. Not Reading the Temperature
Not setting or reading the temperature for your food can cause problems, such as overcooking or undercooking. Therefore, we suggest investing in a quality thermometer that reads food temperatures.
The purpose is to ensure cooking the food appropriately without any problems. Remember, this is essential for cooking meats. Purchasing a food thermometer can help you measure and set the correct cooking times for different food items.
On the other hand, the increased temperature inside the air fryer can burn the food, create smoke, and cause a fire. It may also produce a gross smoky smell from cooking bacon. So, if you use your air fryer for food items like chicken and meat, make sure you use a food thermometer to check the internal temperature of the food. That way, you can ensure proper doneness and prevent overcooking.
4. Cooking Wet Food
Putting wet food in the air fryer’s basket is one of the most significant cooking mistakes. For example, if you are cooking vegetables with higher moisture content, your air fryer will cook food that will taste like steamed food. Experts recommend patting your foods dry before putting them in the basket.
Fresh green veggies, such as kale and spinach, have higher moisture levels, meaning you can’t put them in your air fryer. If you do that, you won’t achieve a crisper finish. In addition, these vegetables will fly all over the place, preventing the hot air from evenly distributing the heat to cook the food.
Remember, an air fryer is much different than a deep fryer. So, you can’t add wet food items or ingredients to the basket. For example, you can’t cook cheese in your air fryer because it will create a lot of mess in the basket. As a result, you will waste your time cleaning the basket, and such a food item may also damage the internal components.
Although it is essential to wash certain food items before cooking, excess moisture levels can put a damper on your dish. Remember, too much wetness can deteriorate your food texture, and you won’t get proper crispiness or brownness. Even if you wash the food, make sure you pat dry it to prevent sogginess.
5. Filling the Basket
Cooking a large batch of food one time is an excellent way to save time, but this is not the case with an air fryer. Remember, putting too much food or filling the basket with ingredients does not allow the hot air to circulate correctly inside the air fryer.
Overcrowding the air fryer’s basket can cause uneven distribution of hot air. As a result, you won’t achieve the desired crispiness or brownness. So, instead of focusing on saving time, we recommend cooking the food properly by not overcrowding the basket.
When you put too much food in the basket, it won’t cook properly. Undercooked food increases the risk of foodborne diseases, especially if you cook chicken and meat, which are temperature-sensitive food items.
Final Words
Air fryers have revolutionized the cooking method, allowing you to use less oil and achieve the same crispiness as deep frying food items. However, if you commit the cooking mistakes given above, you won’t achieve the desired brownness.
